springer us feb 2007 (15 Ergebnisse)

Taschenbuch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Of all of Martin Gardner's writings, none gained him a wider audience or was more central to his reputation than his Mathematical Recreations column in 'Scientific American', which virtually defined the genre of popular mathematics writing for a generation. Flatland, Hydras and Eggs: Mathematical Mystifications will be the final collection of these columns, covering a period roughly from 1979 to Gardner's retirement as a regular columnist in 1986. The notable trend over Gardner's career is the increasing sophistication of the mathematics he has been able to translate into his famously lucid prose. These columns show him at the top of his form and are not to be missed by anyone with an interest in mathematics. As always in his published collections, Gardner includes letters received from mathematicians and other commenting on the ideas presented in the columns.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 404 pp. Englisch.

Taschenbuch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Sirius - A Diamond in the Night will tell two stories. The first and most obvious is why the star known as Sirius has been regarded as an important fixture of the night sky by many civilizations and cultures since the beginnings of history. A second, but related, narrative is the prominent part that Sirius has played in how we came to achieve our current scientific understanding of the nature and fate of the stars. These two topics have a long intertwined history, and the telling of one story eventually leads back to the other. Presently, new observations from space are revealing, in precise terms, how stars like Sirius and the Sun have evolved and what they will ultimately become, while at the same time answering some of the age-old questions about Sirius.The book is divided into five parts. The first (Chapters 1 and 2) describes how Sirius was viewed by the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece and Rome. The second part (Chapters 3-5) describes how early astronomers sought to determine the nature of the stars, including the prediction that Sirius possessed an unseen companion and the eventual discovery of this white dwarf companion 18 years later. The third part (chapters 6-9) describes the major discoveries in stellar astrophysics revealed by observations of Sirius. The fourth part (chapters 10 and 11) probes the modern scientific and pseudo scientific controversies involving Sirius, including the ¿Red Sirius¿ and Dogon tribe stories. The final part (Chapters 12 and 13) highlights modern observations made with the Hubble Space Telescope and other spacecraft of the white dwarf companion.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 280 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Government interference in free enterprise is growing. Should they intercede in business ethics and corporate responsibility; and if so, to what extent The Morality of Business: A Profession for Human Wealthcare goes beyond the utilitarian case in discussing the various elements of business ethics, social policy, job security, outsourcing, government regulation, stakeholder theory, advertising and property rights.'Professor Machan has done it again! Profit seeking behavior by business is ethical and prudent, but it only can be ethical when a person is free, and that depends upon having private property rights. Business ethics is not about ¿corporate citizenship,¿ as so many others seem to believe. The contemplative life, so highly valued by many in academe, is made possible by the success of those in commerce. Which one lives a more ethical life Read Machan¿s, The Morality of Business for his answer.'Don Booth, Chapman University, California, USASpringer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 152 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Modern science and technology, from materials science to integrated circuit development, is directed toward the nanoscale. From thin films to field effect transistors, the emphasis is on reducing dimensions from the micro to the nanoscale. Fundamentals of Nanoscale Film Analysis concentrates on analysis of the structure and composition of the surface and the outer few tens to hundred nanometers in depth. It describes characterization techniques to quantify the structure, composition and depth distribution of materials with the use of energetic particles and photons.The book describes the fundamentals of materials characterization from the standpoint of the incident photons or particles which interrogate nanoscale structures. These induced reactions lead to the emission of a variety of detected of particles and photons. It is the energy and intensity of the detected beams that is the basis of the characterization of the materials. The array of experimental techniques used in nanoscale materials analysis covers a wide range of incident particle and detected beam interactions.Included are such important interactions as atomic collisions, Rutherford backscattering, ion channeling, diffraction, photon absorption, radiative and nonradiative transitions, and nuclear reactions. A variety of analytical and scanning probe microscopy techniques are presented in detail.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 352 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Computational Intelligence is tolerant of imprecise information, partial truth and uncertainty. This book presents a selected collection of contributions on a focused treatment of important elements of CI, centred on its key element: learning. This book presents novel applications and real world applications working in Manufacturing and Engineering, and it sets a basis for understanding Domotic and Production Methods of the XXI Century.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 228 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -This sequel to the authors¿ Psychological Knowledge in Court offers a welcome expansion on key concepts, terms, and issues in causality, bringing much needed clarity to psychological injury assessments and the legal contexts that employ them.Focusing on PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and chronic pain (and grounding readers in salient U.S. and Canadian case law), Causality sets out a multifactorial causality framework to facilitate admissibility of psychological evidence in court. Issues concerning malingering are examined in depth, as are clinical gray areas that can jeopardize validity. At the same time, the book clearly explains what lawyers and clinicians need to understand about each other¿s work¿of crucial importance since the two sides often seem to speak at cross-purposes.The authors and six guest contributorsIllustrate the roles of preexisting vulnerabilities, traumatic events, and post-event occurrences in psychological impairment and disabilityReview the literature on PTSD, TBI, and chronic pain for legal relevanceIdentify current challenges and controversies in the field, as well as emerging areas for researchRecommend methods and instruments for conducting more courtworthy assessmentsProvide a detailed critical review of malingering and related phenomenaPropose a more accurate, shared terminology of causalityValid causality judgments are based on sound knowledge of research on large populations and careful testing of individuals; at the same time they must conform to stringent legal standards of relevance and reliability to be accepted for testimony. Forensic practitioners and attorneys will turn to Causality of Psychological Injury as their professional paths increasingly cross in seeking comprehensive and state of the art information.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 660 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -This book is the first graduate-level textbook presenting a comprehensive treatment of Data Converters. It provides comprehensive definition of the parameters used to specify data converters, and covers all the architectures used in Nyquist-rate data converters. The book uses Simulink and Matlab extensively in examples and problem sets. This is a textbook that is also essential for engineering professionals as it was written in response to a shortage of organically organized material on the topic. The book assumes a solid background in analog and digital circuits as well as a working knowledge of simulation tools for circuit and behavioral analysis. 460 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Fuel cell science and technology is evolving fast for the past two decades as it is thought to be an efficient way of transforming chemical energy of hydrogen rich compounds to electrical energy. Although this idea of direct conversion of chemical energy to electrical energy was first demonstrated by Sir William Grove in 1839 using a fuel cell, it was only in the middle of the twentieth century when Bacon's pioneering work led to the use of fuel cell in space missions. The interest in commercialization of fuel cell for civilian use has caught up with government organizations and private corporations for the past decade on account of fluctuating oil prices and environmental concerns. It is well known that the conventional fossil fuel, which is a primary source of gasoline, is not going to last more than a hundred years in the face of ever-increasing demand in the developed and developing countries. Although the reserves of natural gas, coal and tar sands may last another two to three hundred years with the current rate of production, their conversion is not efficient and pollution-free. Thus, scientists all over the world have taken up fuel cell development work in their quest of solution to the energy crises looming largely on global population. This book aims to script the present status of the rapidly developing field of fuel cell science and technology.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 388 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Dendritic cells play the most vital part in inducing anti-viral immune responses in HIV and AIDS among many other viruses. Research on dendritic cells (DCs) is emerging as a fundamental aspect for the comprehension of the mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of viral diseases as well as for the progress on the development of prophylactic and therapeutic vaccines.This volume focuses on the role of DCs in the pathogenesis and immunity of HIV-1 infection. It has recently been clarified that DCs are important targets and reservoirs of HIV and may play an important role in virus spreading to T cells. Interestingly, HIV can exploit many of the cellular processes responsible for the generation and regulation of the adaptive immune responses to gain access to its main target cells, i.e. the CD4+ T lymphocytes. Thus, the central role of DCs in stimulating T cell activation not only provides a route for viral transmission, but also represents a vulnerable point at which HIV-1 can interfere with the initiation of primary T cell immunity.Recent studies have revealed that several HIV proteins can profoundly influence the phenotype and functions of DCs even in the absence of a productive infection, often resulting in an abnormal immune response. While this knowledge has resulted in the identification of some major mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of HIV-1 infection, the recent progress on DC biology has opened perspectives in the research on new adjuvants (selectively acting on DCs) and on novel strategies for the in vivo targeting of antigens to DCs, which appear to be highly relevant for the development of HIV vaccines. Of note, defects in the number and functions of DCs have been observed in the course of HIV infection and during disease progression, thus suggesting that DCs play an important role in the immune control of viral replication and virus-induced dysfunctions. The development of therapeutic vaccination strategies to be combined with HAART is thought as an important step for an effective control of HIV infection in patients. In this context, the use of autologous DCs may represent an attracting strategy. Notably, DCs are now regarded as a valuable approach for the development of cancer vaccines and several clinical trials have explored the efficacy of different DC preparations as cellular adjuvants in inducing a potentially protective immune response. Recent data in animal models provide the background for the clinical testing of DC-based vaccines in HIV-1-infected patients. Now that we start to understand the complex interactions between HIV and DCs in the pathogenesis of AIDS and we are learning how to prepare potentially effective DCs from lessons on cancer vaccines, we may reasonably assume that DC-based therapeutic vaccines can represent a topic of increasing interest in protocols of clinical immunotherapy of HIV-1-infected patients.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 576 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -Our understanding of the biology of papillomaviruses has increased dramatically over the past 25 years. Before then, the lack of a facile tissue culture system had left this virus family behind the other ¿DNA tumor viruses,¿ such as SV40 and murine polyomavirus. However, with the advent of molecular cloning and other new techniques, coupled with the pivotal stimulus given by connecting HPV infection and cervical cancer, the field has flourished. This progress has culminated in the development of the first true anticancer vaccine, using vir- like particles of the HPV16 and 18 capsid proteins. All investigators in the field should take pride in their contribution to a wonderful scientific journey with such a spectacular humanitarian outcome. Their basic studies, technological innovations, and clinical investigation serve as a model of the positive impact of science in society. The obvious difficulty in assembling a book about any rapidly moving sci- tific field is that many observations may be out of date by the time of publication. Given the rate of progress in papillomavirus research, this text may suffer in this regard. However, the release of the HPV vaccine completes a major era, which should be marked by a summary of the work to date. In this summary, we have emphasized the biology of papillomaviruses as well as their clinical importance. Many of the lessons learned have obvious relevance to other viruses and cancers, and they illuminate new pathways to oncogenesis. These lessons stand alongside the vaccine as monuments of progress.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 448 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -It is well known, that the Sun as central star of our solar system gravitationally controls the orbits of planets and minor bodies. Much less known is the domain of plasma fields and charged particles, however, in which the Sun with a radius of less than 0.7 Million km governs the heliosphere out to about 15 Billion km, a distance about 20 000 times larger in radius or nearly 1013 times bigger in volume. What forces activates the Sun to maintain this power Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) and their descendants are the troops serving the Sun during high solar activity periods.This volume offers a comprehensive and integrated overview of our present knowledge and understanding of Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) and their descendants, Interplanetary CMEs (ICMEs). It results from a series of workshops held between 2000 and 2004. An international team of about sixty experimenters involved e.g. in the SOHO, ULYSSES, VOYAGER, PIONEER, HELIOS, WIND, IMP, and ACE missions, ground observers, and theoreticians worked jointly on interpreting the observations and developing new models for CME initiations, development, and interplanetary propagation.The book is intended to provide scientists active in space physics research a with an up-to-date status of the current understanding of CMEs and ICMEs and their effects in the heliosphere, and also to serve the advanced graduate student with introductory material on this active field of research.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 492 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware - Wireless Ad Hoc and Sensor Networks: A Cross-Layer Design Perspective deals with the emerging design trend that transcends traditional communication layers for performance gains in ad hoc and sensor networks. The author explores the current state of the art in cross-layer approaches for ad hoc and sensor networks, providing a comprehensive design resource.The book offers a structured comparison and analysis of both layered and cross-layer design, providing readers with an overview of the many issues relating to ad hoc and sensor networks. The benefits of these cross-layer approaches are examined through three diverse case studies: a monitoring sensor network using Radio Frequency waves, an ad hoc network that uses Ultra Wide Band Radio, and an acoustic underwater sensor network for environmental monitoring.Wireless Ad Hoc and Sensor Networks: A Cross-Layer Design Perspective is interdisciplinary in character, and should be of value to software engineers, hardware engineers, application developers, network protocol designers, graduate students, communication engineers, systems engineers, and university professors.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -The second volume continues to fill the gap in protein review and protocal literature while summarizing recent achievements in the understanding of the relationships between protein misfoldings, aggregation, and development of protein deposition disorders. The focus of Part B is the molecular basis of differential disorders.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 580 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -We live in the information age. Statistical surveys are used every day to determine or evaluate public policy and to make important business decisions. Correct methods for computing the precision of the survey data and for making inferences to the target population are absolutely essential to sound decision making. Now in its second edition, Introduction to Variance Estimation has for more than twenty years provided the definitive account of the theory and methods for correct precision calculations and inference, including examples of modern, complex surveys in which the methods have been used successfully.The book provides instruction on the methods that are vital to data-driven decision making in business, government, and academe. It will appeal to survey statisticians and other scientists engaged in the planning and conduct of survey research, and to those analyzing survey data and charged with extracting compelling information from such data. It will appeal to graduate students and university faculty who are focused on the development of new theory and methods and on the evaluation of alternative methods. Software developers concerned with creating the computer tools necessary to enable sound decision-making will find it essential.Prerequisites include knowledge of the theory and methods of mathematical statistics and graduate coursework in survey statistics. Practical experience with real surveys is a plus and may be traded off against a portion of the requirement for graduate coursework.This second edition reflects shifts in the theory and practice of sample surveys that have occurred since the content of the first edition solidified in the early 1980¿s. Additional replication type methods appeared during this period and have featured prominently in journal publications. Reflecting these developments, the second edition now includes a new major chapter on the bootstrap method of variance estimation. This edition also includes extensive new material on Taylor series methods, especially as they apply to newer methods of analysis such as logistic regression or the generalized regression estimator. An introductory section on survey weighting has been added. Sections on Hadamard matrices and computer software have been substantially scaled back. Fresh material on these topics is now readily available on the Internet or from commercial sources.Kirk Wolter is a Senior Fellow at NORC, Director of the Center for Excellency in Survey Research, and Professor in the Department of Statistics, University of Chicago. He is a Fellow of the American Statistical Association and a Member of the International Statistical Institute. He is a past president of the International Association of Survey Statisticians and a past chair of the Survey Research Methods Section of the American Statistical Association. During the last 35 years, he has participated in the planning, execution, and analysis of large-scale complex surveys andhas provided instruction in survey statistics both in America and around the world.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 464 pp. Englisch.

Buch. Zustand: Neu. Neuware -In recent years, major developments have been made in understanding various genetic and epigenetic regulatory processes that are critical for the generation of B cell repertoires. These include the role of chromatin regulation and nuclear organization in understating the IgH gene regulation. A role and mechanism of DNA repair proteins in somatic hypermutation has been elucidated. Genetic mutation studies have been instrumental in providing insight into some of the mechanisms involved in targeting CSR to various switch DNA regions located upstream of C region genes, especially a role of AID motifs, transcription, and R-loops. Recent studies support a dominant role of receptor editing in central B cell tolerance and signaling pathways that regulate receptor editing in self-reactive and non-self-reactive immature B cells. These were some of the topics of discussion at the 11th International Conference on B cell Biology. These proceedings highlight recent developments in lymphocyte development, Ig gene rearrangements and somatic hypermutation, chromatin structure modification, B lymphocyte signaling and fate, receptor editing, and autoimmunity.Springer Verlag GmbH, Tiergartenstr. 17, 69121 Heidelberg 208 pp. Englisch.